House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo

Released: May 6th, 2008
Published by: Thomas Nelson Publishers
Series: Dreamhouse Kings, Book One
Page Amount: 286 pages

"Dream house . . . or bad dream?

When the Kings move from L.A. to a secluded small town, fifteen-year-old Xander is beyond disappointed. He and his friends loved to create amateur films . . . but the tiny town of Pinedale is the last place a movie buff and future filmmaker wants to land.

But he, David, and Toria are captivated by the many rooms in the old Victorian fixer-upper they moved into--as well as the heavy woods surrounding the house.

They soon discover there's something odd about the house. Sounds come from the wrong directions. Prints of giant, bare feet appear in the dust. And when David tries to hide in the linen closet, he winds up in locker 119 at his new school.

Then the really weird stuff kicks in: they find a hidden hallway with portals leading off to far-off places--in long-ago times. Xander is starting to wonder if this kind of travel is a teen's dream come true . . . or his worst nightmare."
Information from GoodReads.com

Alright, wow. This book was totally awesome. This book takes a lot of my favorite things, and jumbles it all into one. There is a lot of mystery, suspense, background information, and action. The only thing I felt that it was missing, was a bit of romance. (You guys know what a big romance buff I am. I could spot true love in my sock drawer if I had to.)

Let's start off with the prologue. It rocked my socks off. I was immediately drawn in, and I even made my boyfriend read it just to see what he thought. And it wasn't one of the 'Twilight' prologues, even though I do enjoy those, where it is a few paragraphs from the most important part of the book, willing you to keep reading by giving you a taste of the climax. Nope, it is set thirty years prior to the rest of the story. *No spoiler, it literally says thirty years ago first page.*

After being immediately intrigued by the prologue, Liparulo does the next best thing an author can do. He allows you to get to know the characters before jumping to the action. To me, characters are probably the most important thing about a story. It can be a boring plot with mediocre writing, and still be a pretty good book if you fall in love with the characters. (Hate to use Twilight as an example two times in one review BUT as most of us know, hardly anything of interest happens in the first 200 pages of the book but you are still drawn in because you love Edward and Bella.) Liparulo creates a lovable family a lot of us either have, or wish we had.

After allowing the reader to get to know the characters, Liparulo steadily works his way into the mystery of the novel. I can't say much more without spoiling, but I can say that this book takes you on a different ride than most other young adult books take you on.

All in All: GREAT book, definitely worth buying and reading. Liparulo sets up a great series with this novel.

Plot: 18/20
Characters: 20/20
Creativity: 20/20
Writing: 20/20
Ending: 10/10
Cover: 10/10
=98/100